Secret Agent Man

"I was never supposed to learn the truth."

Writer: Cavan Scott
Format: Comic Strip
Released: May 2017
Printed in: The Ninth Doctor #13

Featuring: Ninth Doctor, Captain Jack

Synopsis

After being absolved of the murder of Tara Mishra, the Doctor successfully defeated his evil doppelganger - a sentient entity formed from his worst impulses and darkest desires. But where is Captain Jack? He's run away after his objectionable actions as a Time Agent were revealed to his friends. But he can't hide from his friends or past for long.

Verdict 

Secret Agent Man was a very intriguing continuation of the Ninth Doctor's ongoing series from Titan Comics! There's still a lot to be answered in the two-part finale but I liked that Captain Jack had his time to shine with what was basically his own spinoff issue of the comic series. We got to see what Captain Jack was like during his days as a Time Agent and it was quite different to what we know of him, at least at this point in the chronological run of Doctor Who. As the series progressed and Torchwood became a thing, we got to learn a great deal about Jack's past but seeing it here was really intriguing. I liked how happy his new life with the Doctor and Rose had made him and it really was a shame that he'd had to leave because Rose found out all about his past and the particular dealing with Zloy Volk. I still love what it translates to in English and I'm fascinated that the Doctor hasn't mentioned the English meaning considering he would later pick up on it in Boom Town with the Welsh language. Anyway, the narration from Jack was really good throughout and it offered an insight into his perspective of things. His dealings with the Time Agency will probably never leave him but I found the arrival of the Doctor quite humorous in this comic strip. This was a rare Ninth Doctor without Rose really appearing which is somewhat a rarity. She was just present for the little flashback to a time where she was flying the TARDIS as the Doctor prevented Jack from falling out of it and being devoured by a dinosaur. The description of the Eradicator showed just how deadly it was as a weapon and the idea of shooting someone and them being erased from time completely, past and future, is a concept that continues to really intrigue me. I like it a lot! Jack punching the Doctor to prevent Volk's eradication was surprising and probably not too necessary but I liked that Jack wanted his independence. The cliffhanger was something I was not expecting though as Captain Jack, confronted with himself, was shot by himself! I look forward to seeing how that gets resolved because it was quite extraordinary! Speaking of which, I should also mention how terrific it was to see a panel of Captain John Hart in a Doctor Who story! That was really good. Overall, a very good and intriguing comic strip!

Rating: 8/10